The Summer We Became Superheroes
by Niknakz93
Summary: :AU/AH: Of all things self-proclaimed geek Jace expected to be doing during his Summer holidays, following the girl of his dreams around the country and to ComicCon was the last thing on his mind. Clary designs comics, Jace owns a comic-book store. It's a match somewhat made in heaven. -Clace- Fluff, romance, lemons and all of the geeky good stuff. R&R?
1. An Unfortunate Problem

_So... yep! There's a new story! And it's contemporary. Chasing the Sun and Ascension are on hold right now. Writing about such sensitive and deep topics can really take their toll on a person. So, there's a fluffy, funny and smutty fic to tide you over until I feel better! (There MIGHT be one more update for CTS coming later tonight if I can finish it). This one! I have a good few chapters written already, so updates will be regular if people want more. If you love Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Marvel and books, this is right up your street. Jace has a filthy mind, I'll warn you right now. (Because filthy minds are the best!) So read on and enjoy! If enough people want to read more, I'll carry on writing it! Have a great summer, guys! And thank-you to those that voted for Ascension in the fic awards again! Read on for adorable geeky Jace! x_

 **The Summer We Became Superheroes.**

 **x**

It was official – she'd given him a raging hard-on in the middle of a store. Even worse, a comic-book store that was beyond packed and overflowing with both kids and adults alike.

"No, no, no-!" Jace gasped, flinging himself through the tightly packed crowd, his destination the shiny red door marked PRIVATE just off the entrance. As soon as he was inside and the door was shut behind him, Jace sagged against the slightly peeling wallpaper and sighed in relief.

 _Girls,_ he thought with an internal groan, raising a hand and pushing his glasses back up his nose before they dropped off the end of his nose. Again. He'd broken his lenses too many times to count that way.

Women. Girls. The female of the species. More commonly known to Jace as his Kryptonite. His weakness. It wasn't the fact that he slept around often, it was because he'd never even been touched by one. To be kissed by a girl was a dream, and to have sex with one nothing but pure fantasy. After all, what kind of girl would desire a guy who couldn't see more than a few inches in front of him without glasses and lived above a comic-book store? Jace cringed at the mere thought of bringing a girl back to his bedroom. It was insanely tidy, yes, but the cover on his duvet was a collage of different superheroes. Plus there was the life-sized poster of Black Widow on the back of his bedroom door. Actually, his entire bedroom was a shrine to all things Marvel, Harry Potter, Star Wars and Lord of the Rings.

"Just think about something disgusting" Jace muttered to himself, glaring down at the front of his jeans as they grew uncomfortably tight once more. "Uh, Darth Vader naked. Um, uh, grandmother Imogen having sex with Jabba the Hutt! Oh... yeah, there we go." The boner problem instantly vanished. Jabba the Hutt could solve anything.

When the babble behind the door grew once more, Jace sighed lightly; it was time to venture back into the heart of the Death Star. The customers seemed to Jace like Stormtroopers and the girl was a Sith Lord. A very hot Sith Lord. He was certain that she knew how to handle a guy's lightsaber.

 _Don't look,_ he told himself sternly as he cracked the door and peered out through the gap. _Don't you dare._

He ignored the inner voice of reason and looked over towards the counter. There, chatting animatedly to Jace's adoptive mother, was the girl of his dreams.

Well, kinda.

She had wild ginger hair that was currently held back by a large black clip, leaving her smiling face exposed. Jace wanted to get up close and personal so he could count just how many freckles she had. Even at this distance he could see them spattering her face like tiny dark flecks of paint. Also, she was so very small. Dinky as he liked to say.

Jace knew it was weird of him, but he always preferred the short girls to the tall and model-like ones. The truth was that tall girls – no, _all_ girls frightened him. But he did have a weakness for the ones with the perky breasts, or ones with enormous knockers that you could bury your face between. They were fucking great too. There was only one thing wrong with the flame-haired girl he was spying on, and that was the non-existent breasts.

 _I'm so shallow,_ Jace thought, shameful as his eyes raked the girl's chest. It was the t-shirt she was wearing that had caught his attention: the black shirt that was stretched across her small boobs read BRB, TAKING THE HOBBITS TO ISENGARD in big, bold white lettering. He'd totally walked into the Death Note stand because he'd been staring so hard and knocked it over, wincing as it banged and wobbled around as he desperately tried to steady it.

She'd noticed, of course. Her plump lips were parted in surprise when she whirled around and stared wide-eyed at Jace. Their eyes had locked and Jace found himself more than entranced by the bright forest-green eyes the girl had. It was at that exact moment that Jace's inner pervert came out to play, bombarding him with images of the girl laid out on top of his Marvel bed covers, not a scrap of clothing on her with him just as naked above her. In his vivid fantasy, she was even moaning and gasping out his name as her hands slid up his arms and over his shoulders, her nails digging into the skin their. Their hips moved in perfect synchronization.

Jace had legged it, dashing into the store cupboard before he began knocking over small children with his growing erection.

 _Just go over and say hello,_ Jace hissed to himself when his adoptive mother moved away from the girl, leaving her alone at the counter. He took a deep breath, pushing the door open a fraction more. _Just say hi. Don't be weird. Don't be creepy. Okay? Go. Go_ now.

He shoved the door open and stepped back into the room. Jace rammed his shaking hands into the pocket of his Captain America hoodie as he made his way over towards the girl, his heart hammering in his chest. What if she took one look at him, raised an eyebrow and laughed? Every single time a girl did that, his confidence slipped even lower into the red.

She was flicking through a copy of a rare Iron Man comic when he finally stopped before her, his courage flickering like a candle in the wind. Not a gentle breeze, a hurricane. Between those delicious lips of hers she rolled a thin plastic stick, sucking gently at the sucker in her mouth. He could smell the cherry even from here.

Jace willed himself not to think about what else those pretty little lips could suck as he cleared his throat. She blinked, looking up from the comic with inquisitive eyes. "Yes?" she asked curiously, taking the sucker from her mouth and laying it down upon the counter... right next to the rare edition of Iron Man.

Jace's inner geek exploded in horror.

"What are you doing?!" he exclaimed before he could stop himself, staring with mortified eyes at the sticky mess of bright red candy on a stick. "That's a... no!" Jace snatched up the Iron Man comic and clutched it close to his chest as if it was his baby. "Idiot!"

The girl stared. And stared. Jace's heart sank into the very pits of hell as he realised just how big of a weirdo-move that had been. So much for acting cool.

"It wasn't going to touch the page," the girl said reproachfully. A lock of fiery hair had escaped the clip, resting against her cheek in a gentle spiral. "I'm not an idiot."

Jace's cheeks flamed with heat. "Well I was just... I... I'm attached to this issue." He patted it gently.

"Yeah," the girl frowned, looking him up and down and evidently not finding him at all to her taste. Jace's heart sank even lower than the flaming depths of hell. How was that even possible? "Evidently. Anyway, Captain Weird, I'll be off."

As soon as she exited the store, Jace slumped against the counter and groaned out loud, ignoring the odd looks a few parents gave him.

He wanted to die from embarrassment. The Force was not with him.

 **-Don't forget to review! :D I'll update when/if there's enough.**


	2. Holy Nekkid Ewoks!

**Yeeep! A new update so soon! I wasn't kidding about updating ASAP if enough reviewed. So happy you're all loving geeky Jace. I'll post the next chapter tomorrow if you all still want me to continue. So enjoy and thanks for the enthusiasm! Also, what kind of geeky things do you want to see in this fic? Throw them at me! x**

* * *

Even after a week, the girl with the flaming hair still frequented his dreams. Actually, she soon became the main feature of them. Night after night after night.

"You seriously need to get laid" his adoptive brother Alec grumbled as he rearranged the graphic novel section. Spice & Wolf issue one fell down and smacked Alec hard on the shoulder but he ignored it, leaving it lying upon the floor. "You were moaning in your sleep again last night. Oh, and you were pretty much trying to get your mattress pregnant with all of the... _hip movements._ " His nose wrinkled up in utter disgust. "I seriously hate having a room next to yours sometimes. You didn't even wake up or stop when I turned the lights on!"

Jace grinned sheepishly from his perch upon the red-topped counter. "I'd say I'm sorry, but that girl was smoking hot for someone with such little boobs."

"Dude, you're so shallow."

And didn't he know it.

Jace opened his mouth to reply, but at that exact moment there was a loud yowling noise behind them, shortly followed by a scream and a stream of explosive swearing. "You... bastard... _cat-!_ "

The pair just stared as the girl came hopping out of the door, clutching her bleeding leg. Jace winced at the long scratches marring Isabelle's usually perfect legs. Blood dripped down her calf. He leaped to his feet and dove around the counter and grabbed the roll of tissue.

"What the hell did you do to that poor cat?" Jace asked, trying not to laugh as he knelt down next to his adoptive sister, yanking off some tissue and dabbing at Isabelle's bloodied leg.

She swore, fingers turning into claws upon the counter. "I didn't see him! He was curled up next to the door! I thought that bastard cat was a door-stop and went to kick it out of the way!"

Jace burst out laughing, his hands shaking as he rubbed the blood away. Isabelle's scowl soon turned into a whimper.

"They're actually pretty deep," Jace frowned in concern, drawing back. "Go into the bathroom and wash the blood off and sit down. It's almost time for my lunch break anyway."

Whimpering and hissing at the same time—an impressive achievement—Isabelle limped back towards the door and vanished through it. After a moment, Alec muttered "I'll make sure she gets up the stairs okay. Those heels don't help at all."

And so Jace was left alone in his comic-book store. Which was one of his favourite things in the world.

After softly shutting the door that led upstairs, Jace grabbed the radio from under the cashier chair and turned it on, cranking the volume up.

Few things were better than lounging in his chair and rereading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at the same time while the movie soundtrack played in the background. Jace yawned widely as he turned over the page, tapping a finger on the spine. Jace was far from religious, but the Harry Potter books were his bible and Rowling his God. Well, Goddess.

Jace frowned when he realized that the Ginny in the books now seemed to resemble the girl from last week in his head. He groaned, closing the book with a snap and set it down upon the counter next to the new pile of comics and manga that Alec was sorting out later on. He punched the Off button of the CD player.

He scanned the shop from his perch, quiet for a moment: even now he couldn't wrap his head around the fact that the comic-book store was his, and his alone. Well, in writing. Maryse ran it mostly, handling stuff like stock. The name of the store was _Herondale Heroes_ and it had been in his family for fifty-years in another week. That day the store was hosting a half-price sale with a number of comic artists and minor figures in the manga world coming in for a ticketed meet-and-greet. All the tickets were gone already.

Jace couldn't wait to meet them. It was all his adoptive mother's idea, and she was the one who planned it all. Jace was always useless at planning unless it was re-organizing the store. In that aspect, he was amazing. He was also incredibly awkward around people of all shapes and sizes and he just couldn't help it.

The Star Wars opening theme blared now, indicating that someone had opened the shop door. Jace still couldn't get used to it and the sudden noise startled him so much that he knocked his copy of Deathly Hallows off the counter.

"By Merlin's saggy left-!" Jace swore, diving down underneath. The tiled floor was in the pattern of a black-and-white chessboard. When he'd been a kid, he'd pretend he was playing a gigantic game of Wizard's Chess with his parents. But they weren't here anymore and he was twenty-four now.

" _Captain Weird? Is that you?"_

He knew that voice, for it had been moaning his name during his dreams for the entire week.

Jace saw stars as the top of his head collided with the underside of the counter. He swore once more, pulling himself up onto the chair with a hand clamped over the top of his head. It fucking _hurt!_

Her hair was loose this time, hanging around her face and shoulders like a wave of ginger, her small face pinched into a frown – a frown of concern or disgust? "Are you okay?" she asked, staring at him now with an expression that meant for sure that she wanted to get the hell out of here already.

"Yes," Jace replied hurriedly, the pain in his head now the last thing on his mind. "I'm cool. I have a thick skull. See-?" he went to rap sharply on the top of his head, but then thought better of it. The girl raised an eyebrow in disapproval.

Jace's eyes unwittingly travelled down to the bright acid green shirt she was wearing and he choked a little: she had a Harry Potter t-shirt on today. More specifically, it was a Malfoy Quidditch t-shirt. And it was freaking awesome.

"Are you a Slytherin then?" Jace asked eagerly before he could stop himself, nodding to her shirt. She frowned, then glanced down. "Oh. Yeah, I am. I thought I'd be in Ravenclaw but Pottermore put me in Slytherin."

This was too perfect – she was even a Potterhead! "Same. Well, kinda... I wanted Gryffindor but Pottermore put me in Slytherin. But I'm not complaining, because Slytherin is badass. What's your favourite character? Does your shirt mean that you love Draco Malfoy? I can't stand him. I love Tom Felton's portrayal of him in the movie, but Malfoy is a little white rat! Sorry, I mean _ferret!_ His father was a total knobface, but that is not an excuse for him and-" he stopped dead, blushing a deep crimson as he realised he'd begun to ramble.

She laughed awkwardly, spots of red in her own cheeks. "Wow. You really _are_ the stereotypical geek, aren't you? Your bedroom is a shrine, isn't it?"

Once more, the Force was most certainly not with him. "Hey, that's not nice. What about you, huh? You're a wearer of fandom t-shirts." _Please,_ he prayed to his downstairs region. _Don't you dare play pop-up right now. Okay? Okay._

She nodded, expression far from bothered. "I'm a geek too. What of it? In my line of work, we usually are geeks. Anyway, Captain Weird, where is Maryse? She said she'd have the documents for the store's anniversary day all ready for me today."

What the hell was Maryse planning? "She's out right now. But uh, what were you expecting?"

"The papers on the store's anniversary, duh," she sighed, rubbing the back of her hand across her forehead. "I just said."

Jace knew where the envelopes were, thankfully. He nodded. "Okay. What's your name? I'll go and get it from upstairs."

Suddenly, her cool and slightly annoyed demeanour shifted into awkwardness. She cleared her throat and replied much too quietly. Jace frowned. "I didn't catch that?"

"Morgenstern," she replied a little too loudly. "Morgenstern!"

Jace's world whirled around him. He discreetly grabbed hold of the counter to steady himself. When the world righted itself, he spluttered out "Morgenstern? As in-?"

"Yes," Clary replied grumpily. "I'm _their_ daughter. And yes, _his_ sister. Whoopee me (!)"

 _Holy shit!_ Jace thought distantly. _I've been sleep-fucking Clary Morgenstern!_ He didn't know if he should feel horrified or like an absolute boss.

Clary rolled her eyes and sighed in frustration. "Yes – my dad and brother are famous and apparently, so am I. Whatever. Please go and get that envelope so I can leave? I have stuff to do."

Jace's cheeks burned with heat and he just couldn't hold it in any longer.

"I really, _really_ love your work!" he exploded. "It's so fucking awesome! I just... I can't believe you're her!" He laughed weakly, knowing full-well how much of a freak he was looking like right now.

To his surprise, Clary blushed. She gave a quiet half-laugh. "Um... thanks, I guess?"

"You're welcome" he replied, trying to fight back the dewy-eyes and failing.

 _Clary Morgenstern is coming to the store's 50_ _th_ _anniversary-!_ Jace suddenly realized, the world spinning once more. _Holy fucking naked Ewoks!_

Her father, Valentine Morgenstern, was legendary to anyone who collected or read Manga or comic-books, as was his wife: he thought up the characters and their stories and his wife, Jocelyn, bought them to life. It was a combination that, over thirty-years, had given birth to hundreds of new characters, diverse storylines and even movies. The whole venture had rocketed the Morgenstern family to the very tip-top of the business. And the talent didn't stop with the parents, for when he was just twelve, their first child, Jonathan, released his own comic that spawned thousands of followers. And then, just two years ago at the age of twenty-one, Clary joined in, publishing her own series.

And Clary was well on the way to matching her parent's and brother's fame already. But unlike her family who enjoyed the limelight, Clary stayed out of it, never consenting to have events of her own at places like ComicCon. Jace couldn't remember ever seeing a photo of her after the age of twelve.

"Take a picture," she said flatly, "it lasts longer."

Jace's phone burned in his back pocket. He cleared his throat. " _Can_ I have a selfie with you?"

Clary's eyes narrowed and Jace didn't push his luck anymore. He spluttered about waiting there and hurried into the back. But instead of grabbing the envelope, he ran like the Flash up the stairs and burst into the room where Alec and Izzy were.

"That girl!" he gasped, glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose once more. He didn't care right now. "She's Clary Morgenstern! _Clary_ freaking _Morgenstern_ is signing at _our_ store next week!"

Alec gaped. "The one you've been jacking off to?" He ignored his sister's utterly revolted look. Jace flushed. "Yes, that one. Holy shit, where are the envelopes with the finished forms in?"

"In the kitchen" Alec replied, looking dumbstruck. "Is she really Clary Morgenstern? Why the hell would someone as big as her be signing here-? Mom never told us anything about her, and she's the one that reached out to everyone coming."

"I don't know, but shit. Shit man! Clary Morgenstern! I feel faint."

"Jesus," Isabelle muttered under her breath. " _Boys._ Stay here Jace or you'll frighten the poor girl off with your weirdness. I mean it Jace, _stay here._ "

He totally ignored her words, following her silently down the stairs. Jace watched her smile and chat to Clary, handing the girl the white envelope through the narrow crack in the door. Jace felt guilty when he saw how genuine Clary's smile was now that she was around Isabelle. Maybe he really _was_ a complete and utter geeky freaky creep. When Clary left and the Star Wars theme began blaring throughout the shop, he didn't have time to dash back upstairs before Isabelle yanked open the door and stared at him with narrowed eyes.

"Now," she started, raising a threatening finger. "I expect mom paid a crap-ton of money to have her signing here. So don't you dare get following her around next week like a horny puppy and making her feel awkward. Okay?"

Jace rolled his eyes in exasperation. "I'd never follow someone around and make them feel awkward. I'm not an insane fan, you know?"

Isabelle snorted and Jace bared his middle finger at her.

He couldn't wait for next Friday: Jace considered it his new mission in life to get his manga's signed by Clary Morgenstern.

 **-Don't forget to review! Next one will be up soon!**


	3. Almost Batman

**Whoop! Next chapter! More sexy geeky awkward Jace for you all. Thanks for the reviews! Next chapter shall be up tomorrow most likely! Oh gosh, yesterday was my cousin's 4** **th** **birthday party and it was Marvel themed. I was the Avengers. Yes, ALL of them. AT ONCE. Never let kids dress you up, people. Those Thor outfits kill! *Chases after them with rubber Mjolnir.* Don't forget to review my lovelies! x p.s. I can't be the only one who's MEGA excited for the Shadowhunters TV show?! Dominic Sherwood! Ahhh!**

* * *

The event was sold out completely. Not a single ticket was left, and Jace couldn't believe his eyes when he opened up the shutters at eight in the morning to find a few people already sat outside and waiting for the event that began in five hours.

People were insane. Jace didn't think so, though – he'd turned up at numerous events six hours early before, and he didn't regret it once. There were fans and then there were _fans._

"Jace!" Alec complained at ten when Jace decided to yank his shirt off and change, barging into his adoptive brother's room shirtless. "What the fuck, man?"

"I can't wear this" Jace announced, tossing his Hogwarts crest t-shirt at Alec. "I need to look _nice_ today, not a rabid fanboy. Urgh, I hate the term 'fanboy.' It makes me sound like a screaming teenager."

"You were totally a fanboy when you were a teenager, and you still are now. You're a... fanman?" Alec snickered, but his smirk soon vanished when Jace yanked open his wardrobe and began to rifle through the clothes. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I need nice clothes" Jace grunted, yanking out a black sweater and inspecting it; The moment he saw the holes in the cuffs he shoved it right back in. "Don't you have _anything_ intact?"

Alec flew to his feet, grabbing his brother's arm and tugging him away from the wardrobe. "Get out of there-!" he ordered, voice strangely high-pitched. "You can't have anything!"

"Why don't you want me in there?" Jace's grin was wicked and teasing. "Are you hiding things from me and the family? What is it? Love-letters? Nudes of you? Nudes of a secret _girlfriend?_ A Superman-themed buttpl- ?"

"Out!" Alec roared, grabbing a sapphire-blue sweater and thrusting it at Jace, bundling him out of the door and slamming it shut behind him. Once the laughter subsided, Jace wondered what the actual hell Alec _could_ be hiding. They didn't keep secrets from each other and the fact that Alec might be hiding one made Jace frown.

"What is all of the commotion?" Izzy hissed, coming out of her small side-room. She was wearing a long and ankle-length cream dress that covered up her marred leg completely. "And why do you have Alec's sweater? That will be much too big for you."

Jace sighed wearily, glancing down to the sweater. He guessed she was right – Alec was a tad more broad in the shoulders than he was. "I have nothing to wear" he said glumly, dumping the sweater before Alec's door.

At his words, Izzy arched a brow. "Nothing to wear? Your entire room is full of fandom t-shirts."

Jace cleared his throat. "I wanted to dress nicely today. No fandom t-shirts."

Izzy was no idiot and Jace groaned when a slow and wide smirk spread over her face. "Don't say it!" he warned her, but it was in vain.

"Ha! Really, Jace? That girl will eat you alive. Put your Star Wars t-shirt on and just come down and help me and mom set up already. Your chest is gross and is distracting me right now." She turned away, rolling her eyes once more.

Okay, so maybe Clary Morgenstern _was_ well out of his league, but he was still going to try his luck. Try being the operative word.

He ended up wearing a Slytherin t-shirt, knowing that Clary would pick up on it straight away. It was cheating but he didn't care.

* * *

When the event was a mere thirty-minutes away from starting, the stars of the show began to arrive, filing into the shop through the back-door that led into the parking lot.

She was late. As Jace introduced himself to each and every guest, he kept a watchful eye on the fans lined up outside. They would be the first to spot her. And a few minutes later, sure enough, the cries of excitement began. But it wasn't just Clary's name they were squealing, it was another one as well. One that made Jace stop talking mid-sentence.

"Well fuck" Raphael Santiago, creator of the Dumort Chronicles manga laughed weakly as Jace led him over to his table. "Dios, you are in for a wild day."

And didn't Jace know it.

Jace decided against running up the stairs three at a time to grab his stack of Jonathan Morgenstern's comics when they parked up behind the store. _Don't do it,_ he warned himself. _You're supposed to be acting professional today, not falling to your knees in front of two Morgensterns and proclaiming them your gods._

So, after taking a deep breath to steady his nerves and ignoring a smirk from Isabelle, Jace went into the back and tugged open the door.

He supposed that Jonathan Morgenstern was the Tony Stark of the comic-book industry: the man was a genius and he sure knew that he was famous. Also, a sarcastic and rude asshole at times. No Arc Reactor though, sadly.

Jonathan was wearing dark blue denim jeans and a white button-up shirt with a black bomber-jacket thrown over it all when Jace tugged open the door. His white-blond hair was smoothed away from his face and a pair of dark Ray-Bans were sat snug before his eyes.

"So," he instantly began, tone anything but friendly. "You're the nerdy creep that's been harassing my sister and making her feel uncomfortable? It's freaks like you that caused Clary to give up doing signings. Freak."

Next to him, Clary gasped. "Jonathan!" she exclaimed in horror, staring wide-eyed at Jace. "Apologize! Now!"

Jace just stared, his excitement doused instantly like a lit match tossed into a swimming pool. His smile faded away, replaced by a frown and eyes full of hurt. "What?" He looked at Clary, feeling nothing but numbness as he met her still wide emerald eyes.

Clary's lips were parted in fright, but then her expression turned into one of fury, cheeks coloured red with embarrassment. "Jonathan!" she hissed, glaring up at her brother. "I... this isn't the one! This isn't him!"

"What?" Jonathan said flatly, cocking a pale brow at his younger sister. "But your exact words were 'the bug-eyed one with blond hair that needs a wash and stupid hipster glasses?'"

Just when Jace thought that he couldn't feel any worse, he did. He felt crushed, destroyed. _Well, you know what they say,_ a sad and distant part of his brain told him. _Never meet your heroes._

"This isn't him!" Clary insisted, her voice next to pleading by now. " _Jon!_ "

Jonathan Morgenstern grumbled out something Jace didn't catch and slid his sunglasses up onto his head, appraising the blond stood before him. "Sorry" he apologized hastily, shooting his sister a glare. "From her description I thought it was you. Clary ah, has had very bad experiences with signings before. Sorry again."

"It's okay" Jace muttered, feeling like curling up into a ball and just hibernating until the end of the world arrived. Clary swallowed hard and said "I'll be fine now, Jon. I'll ring you when I'm done, yeah?"

Jonathan nodded, turning his gaze back onto his sister. "Okay sis. Any trouble and just give me a call."

"I'll be fine," Clary insisted, giving her brother a quick hug before pulling away and walking past Jace and heading inside.

"Sorry again" Jonathan apologized once more, slipping his shades back on and heading in the direction of his car. As soon as he turned away, Jace shut the door with a snap and sighed, resting his forehead against the cool metal.

 _Freak,_ his brain told him over and over again. _You are a freak. Freak, freak, freak._

" _Um... excuse me?"_

Jace didn't want to turn around and see her, let alone talk to her. When he didn't reply, Clary sighed. "I'm sorry. I really, really am sorry. It's just... when I was twenty-one and doing my first signing with my dad, this man followed me when I went to the toilet and well, I was wearing a skirt. He tried to pounce on me when I came out but a security guard spotted him before he could lift my skirt up any higher. He's the reason why I don't... well, do signings. I don't really want to do this one but my dad forced me to do it. Hell, he's booked me for ComicCon and... more." Her voice shook slightly with fear. "I've been a bitch and I've been taking it out on you. I'm sorry, I really am. Please forgive me."

It all made sense now to Jace – why Clary Morgenstern never did any signings. But still...

"You don't even know me" Jace mumbled, refusing to look at her, voice laced with hurt. "And you shouted your mouth off about me. Yes, I can be extremely overexcited at times and I know that, but I'd never hurt anyone. And I'm sorry that you think I'm a geeky freak, but that's the way I am and I wouldn't change that for anything or anyone."

"You're not a freak" Clary whispered, shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other. "You're just extremely passionate. Oh God, I'm so sorry-" she stopped dead. "I don't even know your name."

"It's Jonathan, like your brother," he shrugged, still refusing to even glance at her, instead staring at the plain white wall opposite. "But everyone calls me Jace."

She nodded a little, eyes falling to the floor. "I'm sorry Jace, I am."

"It's okay" he said a little too gruffly. Behind them, the door clattered open and Maryse hissed "we need to move, people! Clary, could you please take your seat? Jace, make sure you stay next to her table in case... well, you know how excitable fans can get."

Jace opened his mouth to protest but Maryse was already gone. "Come on" Jace grunted, sidestepping Clary and shoving the door open.

Today was supposed to be an amazing day, but now Jace just felt cold and distant. Even worse, he felt like walking out or just retreating to his room for the rest of the event. When he met the last few artists, his smile was almost mechanical and his mannerisms were wooden and forced.

 _Fuck this,_ he thought when he took the chair next to Clary a few minutes before the doors opened to the fans. _I refuse to let her ruin this day. This massive day that mom and dad would have loved._

And then the doors were thrown wide to the public and the event began.

Jace felt sorry for the other artists when more than half lined up for Clary's table. Just for Clary's table. Raphael Santiago flashed Jace a grin and a shrug that seemed to say "well, were you expecting anything else?"

Clary was frightened, Jace could tell as much: her hands shook slightly when the first person stepped up to the table. He hissed into her ear "Just remember that not all fans are as crazy as that one from your first signing. And if someone does try to molest you again, I'm legally bound to whack them with my model of Mjolnir or something. And it weighs a ton, okay."

She laughed at that. Actually laughed. Jace felt some of his anger abate despite everything.

* * *

As the day wore on and the more fans Clary met, Jace couldn't help but notice how much her confidence improved. Her hands were no longer shaking and there seemed to be a permanent smile etched upon her face. She was very pretty when she smiled. Despite how pissed-off he still felt, he couldn't help but sneak the odd glance when she wasn't paying attention. She made his heart flutter and he couldn't stop it.

When Clary stopped signing for a few minutes break and a drink, she made a beeline for Jace and asked, that smile he was beginning to like so much upon her face. "So how long have you been working here?"

"I've been here all of my life," Jace replied with a shrug. Why was she making small-talk? Guilt from earlier? "My parents set up this place."

"Oh! So Maryse is your mother?"

"No," Jace said shortly. "My parents are dead. They died when I was ten. Car crash. They fought a truck and lost."

Clary fell silent for a moment, tightening her fingers around her mug of coffee. "I'm sorry about your parents" she said quietly, sincerely. "So you inherited this place?"

Jace nodded. "Maryse is my Godmother. She'd just recently divorced and was out of a job, so she took up running this place and looking after this place until I was old enough. But then, even when I was old enough I told her to carry on being the boss. I might own this place in writing, but she basically runs it." He snorted. "Although, not for much longer I think: Comic-book stores don't exactly make a lot of money. Today is all about attracting attention and hopefully giving us a boost."

At that, Clary frowned. "I knew that comic-book stores were becoming rare, but never to this extent. Don't you sell online?"

"Of course we do, but it's comic-books. Not everyone is into them. It's why we have manga too. And graphic novels and other stuff. But even then, we're still not making enough." He shrugged a shoulder. "It had to happen eventually, right? Comic-book stores are a dying breed. Guess I'll be working in McDonald's soon."

Clary didn't laugh. "This really sucks" she frowned. "I hope this place doesn't close down – it's beautiful. Who did the mural on the wall behind the counter? The Avengers fighting the Death Star one?"

Jace shifted awkwardly. "Me" he admitted. "I like art."

"Well it's amazing, okay? Have you designed any comics? Or mangas? Your style is fantastic."

Yes. He had endless boxes beneath his bed stuffed full of his ideas. "No. Anyway, you should be back out there before the fans invade this room."

The final round of signing was considerably easier than the first for Jace. He didn't feel so awkward sat next to Clary now. He counted twenty-one little brown freckles on her face and two on her chin. There was even a tiny one just beneath the right of her bottom lip that he found very distracting. His eyes kept wandering to it and when there was only a few people left in her line, she caught him looking. Clary made no comment, merely raising an eyebrow slightly. Had he really seen the faint smile or was it a trick of his wildly vivid imagination?

When the event finished and the final person left, their signed comics clutched tight to their chest and a wide smile on their face, Isabelle crossed over to the door and closed them, breathing out a sigh of relief.

It was just gone four in the afternoon already. Clary flexed her fingers while chatting and laughing to the other artists, her cheeks red as she signed copies of her manga even for them and stock for the store.

Maryse bought out a tray of steaming cups of tea and coffee, passing them around to everyone. Clary politely declined and headed over to Jace who was tidying up the chairs and tables. She tapped him on the shoulder, a grin on her face. In her hand she had her phone. "So uh, can _I_ have a selfie with you?" she asked. Jace tried to discern if she was joking and it didn't seem like she was.

"By the way, you shouldn't feel so sad about your parents," she smiled after they took their photo together. "You're halfway to becoming Batman."

Jace knew his parent's would have gotten a laugh out of Clary's words, so he didn't feel bad at all when he burst out laughing. He'd never thought about it that way before. It made him feel much cooler than he actually was.

When Clary left, climbing into her brother's flashy sports car, Jace swore to himself – he had forgotten not only to get the picture from her, but also to ask her to sign his own copies of her manga.

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